An In-Depth Profile of the Elephant Gun

The “elephant gun” is a generic term to describe guns that are of a large enough caliber to tackle even the mighty elephant.

Lets look at some elephant guns and the immense bullets they shoot!

How about a big bore rifle shooting the .600 Nitro Express cartridge? This cartridge shoots a 900-grain bullet at around 2,050 feet per second (fps). This big thumper has been chambered in a variety of rifle actions, including bolt, double barreled rifle and single shot rifles.

The Holland & Holland .700 Nitro Express double rifle, as pictured below, is meant for fast shooting on extremely large game animals like rhinos, cape buffalo and elephants, when every split second counts. If you haven’t hit your mark in two shots, you have probably been eaten or trampled by your prey turned predator!

Want a more modern elephant gun caliber? Try the .577 Tyrannosaur (T-REX). This caliber shoots 750-grain solid bullet at 2,480 feet per second (fps). Invented in 1993 by cartridge maker A-Square, the recoil has been well-known as practically unmanageable.